Special from
Zoo Tennis
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This annual exercise provides me with an opportunity to step back from my day-to-day coverage to take a bird's eye view of bigger issues and trends in junior and college tennis. Several questions similar to those from last year's edition remain open, serving as a reminder that not everything can or should be resolved in a calendar year.
Can Fort Lauderdale add juice to the Orange Bowl?
Way back in January of 2020, I first raised a now nearly annual question about the fate of the J500 Orange Bowl, one of the most prestigious and historic tournaments on the ITF Junior Circuit.
Although popular with players, coaches and fans, the Veltri Tennis Center in Plantation, Florida has not, in the USTA's eyes, generated appropriate buzz for the event, so an alternative had been sought and now has been identified, with the Orange Bowl committee throwing its support behind the Jimmy Evert Tennis Center in Fort Lauderdale's Holiday Park. The city is undertaking a major renovation of the site, which is expected to be completed this fall, and the USTA will be announcing the tournament's move there in the coming weeks, after its facilities agreement with the city is signed. This keeps the event on clay in its historic South Florida location and secures its long-time association with the Orange Bowl, which is best known for its college football bowl game.
With that commitment secured, the Orange Bowl tennis committee can now begin exploring the possibility of ATP and WTA wild cards for the champions, which may draw more attention to the ITF Junior Circuit's final tournament of the year.
